The Nicaraguan Government has extinguished the legal status of more than 25 Catholic organisations, including religious orders, another diocesan Caritas chapter and lay Catholic groups, as part of an attack on civil society with the closure of 1500 nongovernmental organisations. Source: OSV News.
The closures, announced on Monday by the Interior Ministry, targeted religious and civic groups ranging from Protestant churches to the Rotary Club to agricultural producer associations and even the National Chess Federation.
A source familiar with Nicaragua described Monday’s actions as “an extraordinary effort by the Nicaraguan state to crush nongovernmental organisations across Nicaraguan society”.
The attack from the increasingly totalitarian regime of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, further eliminated civic spaces beyond their control, while further attacking freedom of worship.
The regime has closed at least 5000 nongovernmental organisations and silenced independent media since 2018, when protesters took to the streets to demand the president’s ouster – only to be met with violence from police and paramilitaries.
Monday’s closures especially targeted evangelical congregations, many of which were described as modest by independent media.
The assault also continued on the Catholic organisations, putting among the cancelled religious orders: the Capuchin Friars Minor, Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus, the Augustinian monks and nuns, Mercedarian Missionaries of Berriz, the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (also known as “Trappist” Sisters), and the Brothers of Charity.
The Caritas chapter in the Diocese of Granada was also shut down. The closure follows the August. 12 shuttering of the Caritas chapter in the Diocese of Matagalpa — headed by exiled Bishop Rolando Álvarez.
The interior ministry alleged that the 1500 NGO groups losing their registrations had failed to properly report their finances “for periods of between one and 35 years,” along with “hindering” its “control and oversight” over such organisations.
The Nicaraguan state effectively seizes the assets of nongovernmental groups that lose their legal standing.
FULL STORY
Nicaragua extinguishes legal status for religious orders (By David Agren, OSV News)
